


Holiday Garage

by bzarcher



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: All The Tropes, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Cars, Christmas Eve, F/F, Fluff, Grief/Mourning, Hallmark Movie Inspired, Healing, Mechanics, Meet-Cute, Minor Angst, Podfic Welcome, Secret Santa, So many tropes, Tropes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-20 02:38:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,313
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13137357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bzarcher/pseuds/bzarcher
Summary: When Amélie Lacroix broke down in the middle of nowhere, all she wanted was a chance to get her car fixed and go home.But it's Christmas Eve, and maybe things aren't going to work out just the way she'd expected.On the other hand, they might also work out better than she ever could have hoped.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first chapter of this was written for the WidowTracer Week Secret Santa fic challenge, and was inspired by [this post on Tumblr!](http://bedannibal-lectaurier.tumblr.com/post/135883627692/bedannibal-lectaurier-i-just-want-hallmark)
> 
> Enjoy!

Amélie let out a huff of frustration as she sat behind the wheel of her car, glad the person on the other end of her phone call couldn’t see the way she rolled her eyes.

“For the last time, Olivia, _no._ ”

Unfortunately, her friend didn’t seem capable of taking a hint. “I don’t even get why you took that job. Why would you want to be in _nowheresville_?”

She thought of the bouquet she’d left on Gérard’s grave the day before she had left, and Amélie’s fingers tightened on the wheel until her knuckles went white. “You _know_ why.”

“I know why you don’t want to be in that big, empty, drafty house,” Olivia countered. “But that’s _exactly_ why you should be back in town with your friends! You _need_ people.”

“I need _money_ ,” Amélie snapped as she threw the Audi into a turn a bit harder than she really should have. “Hence why I took the offer to _work_. I taught classes, I got paid, and I will go home for a few days and come back _after_ the holiday.”

“You sure?” Olivia’s voice turned a bit sly. “ _Angela_ might be at the party…”

Amélie stomped the accelerator to the floor, making the snow covered trees on either side of the road whip past. “An even better reason for me to avoid it.”

“Ooof. So you two didn’t…” Olivia coughed. “Y’know. Work it out?”

“When would we have time to do that?” Amélie didn’t bother hiding the bitterness in her voice. “Her _work_ keeps her busy, and she made it clear it will _always_ come first. It was... _she_ was...a mistake.”

She could almost hear the sad little frown on Olivia’s face. “Hey. Wanting to find someone else _isn’t_ a mistake, Ami. He would _want_ you to be happy.”

Amélie took her frustrations out on a vicious downshift. “Then _stop_ pushing me to go somewhere that I will _not_ be happy.”

Olivia let out a long sigh. “OK, OK, _entiendo, amiga_.” She paused a second. “Stop by Gabe’s at least? He said he’d love to see you when you get back into town.”

Amélie let out an amused snort as she took another twisting curve. “Liar.”

Olivia chuckled. “OK, yeah. But he could use the company, too.”

Amélie hummed softly as she acknowledged the point. “Perhaps. But the snow is getting worse here - I need to concentrate on the road.” That wasn’t _entirely_ a lie, but it wasn’t entirely the truth either.

Still, Olivia seemed to take the hint at last. “I’ll let you go, then. You drive safe - and call me when you get home!”

“ _Goodbye,_ Olivia.” Amélie thumbed the button on the wheel to end the call and sighed as she sank back into the embrace of her seat. Getting away for a few days _had_ made her happy and so did driving. Thrashing her little sports car through the twists and turns made her feel more alive than anything else had since…

She tapped the gearshift paddle as she tossed her head. She was trying to distract herself, not dwell on her loss. But instead of a throaty growl and burst of acceleration to take her out of the curve, there was a nasty crunching sound as the car jerked violently, as if she’d caught it on some gigantic hook. Her speed dropped despite the climbing RPMs as she tried to give it some gas, and her nose wrinkled with distaste as she caught a whiff of burnt plastic and hot metal.

“ _Putain de bordel de merde!”_

Amélie reached to turn on her hazard lights as she spat every curse she could think of while she tried to shift again, hoping the transmission would catch and slip back into gear, but there was nothing to be done. Using what momentum she had left to get over to the side of the road, her car finally came to a stop on the snow covered shoulder with the engine still idling but no power reaching the wheels.

 _“Magnifique_ ,” she groaned as she let her head fall back against the padded material of the headrest, then reached for her phone. She wasn’t even certain where she _was_ , but she had GPS and the number for roadside assistance.

She just hoped there was a tow truck driver working on Christmas Eve.

* * *

Keeping the car running had helped ward off the worst of the cold, but it had still taken several hours for a tow truck to reach her, and by the time the white haired driver had gotten her car loaded onto the bed it was nearly dark.

“Is there a dealership close by?”

The driver - MAKO, according to his nametag - shook his head with a grunt. “Nearest Audi dealer is two hours away, and their service department was closin’ early. Christmas,” he explained. “Think I could get you into Holliday Garage. Next town over.”

Amélie grimaced. “Do they have much experience with Europeans?”

Mako gave a rumbling laugh. “Oh. Yeah.”

She wasn’t sure she liked the sound of that, but what choice did she have? “If you are certain they will be open…”

Mako nodded as he threw the truck into gear. “Yup.” For some reason he still seemed quite amused. “She’s open.” He was not much of a conversationalist as he drove them into, as it turned out, the small town of Holliday, but Amélie hadn’t been looking to chat.

She _ought_ to call Olivia and let her know, but she was sure that her friend would insist on dropping everything to come get her. Better to let them enjoy their party, and not ruin anyone else’s evening.

The small garage they arrived at had a brightly lit neon sign in the window announcing it was, in fact, still open, and Amélie could see a figure in a welder’s hood and apron at a workbench through the open bay doors, sparks flying up from whatever they were mending.

“Go on inside,” Mako rumbled. “I’ll get your car off the truck and you can warm up.”

Amélie nodded, pulling her wool peacoat a bit tighter before she stepped out into the cold, her boots crunching in the snow as she crossed the parking lot, then opened the door with a jingle of bells.

The warmth of the shop was welcome after her long wait for the tow. Unknotting the scarf she’d been wearing, Amélie undid the buttons of her coat before walking to the counter.

Wide windows looked in on the shop floor, and the figure who she’d seen welding was easier to see now, and she watched as they put down their tools, turned towards the open bay and straightened up in what seemed like surprise at the sight of Mako unloading her car off the truck. Turning to look into the shop, the welder saw her watching and offered a wave, then pulled _her_ hood off to reveal a thick head of spiky dark brown hair, a pleasant looking face with a bit of a pointed chin, and a wide, expressive mouth that went from a surprised ‘O’ to a friendly smile.

Holding up a hand in a “Wait just a second” gesture, the welder (mechanic? Owner? All three?) pulled off her heavy gloves and apron to before walking into the waiting area. “Hullo! Welcome to Holliday Garage!”

Amélie blinked in surprise at the woman’s accent. At least she knew why Mako had seemed so amused when she’d asked if the garage had experience with Europeans. “Ah. Hello…”

The mechanic cocked her head slightly, then laughed at herself. “Oh! Sorry, I’ve gotten used to living in a pretty small town.” She offered a hand with a friendly smile. “Lena Oxton.”

“Amélie,” she answered, shaking the shorter woman’s hand. “Amélie Lacroix.”

“Pleasure to meet you, Amélie Lacroix.” Lena’s grip was firm, with calloused fingers that lingered perhaps a moment longer than absolutely necessary.

Amélie was a bit shocked by the warmth in her touch, but tried to explain it away as her own cold skin and Lena having just finished working with a torch. Still, she found herself wishing the brief contact had lasted another second or two longer as Lena stepped back and pulled a heavy red and black checked flannel off of the coat tree in the corner.

“So, obviously you had a spot of car trouble. Can you tell me what happened, exactly?”

Amélie grimaced as she buttoned her coat back up again. “I was shifting when I suddenly went out of gear. I tried upshifting, with no change, and trying to go down another gear didn’t work either.”

Lena gave a pained ‘ooof’ as she finished shrugging on her flannel. “I’ll be honest - that doesn’t sound good. If you’re lucky it’s just a plug, maybe a connection for the electronics in the gearbox. If not…”

Amélie groaned. She hadn’t wanted to spend the holidays with Olivia or their other friends, but she’d expected to be at _home_ , not stranded in the middle of nowhere. “I will try to hope for the best, then.”

The sun had set completely and the snow was picking up when they went back outside, and the wind stung her face and hands as they walked to where Mako was waiting next to the gleaming black shape of her car, standing out against the parking lot like a polished piece of onyx atop white cloth.

“ _Oh,_ ” Lena breathed with an almost reverent tone. “That is a _lovely_ TT. Is that a Quattro?”

“It is.” Amélie smiled despite herself. “It has gotten me into trouble, but when I am behind the wheel I don’t have a care in the world.”

“I can bet.” Lena flashed her a grin, then put her fingers to her lips to whistle. “OI! Mako! Can you help me push it into the bay?”

The big man nodded, and Amélie found herself behind the wheel again, steering as Lena directed until the car was positioned on the previously unoccupied lift.

“Right, then! You can hop out.” Lena had started carefully walking around the car, dropping to her hands and knees to examine the undercarriage. “Got a bad feeling already, though…”

Before Lena could explain, Mako cleared his throat. “Got another call. The Song kid was doing donuts in the snow and blew a tire.”

Lena stood and waved in the general direction of the road. “Go for it. I’ll see what we can figure out here. Thanks for your help, mate.”

Mako gave a grunt and a wave, then plodded back to his truck, flipping on the flashing yellow light bars before driving into the night.

Amélie turned back at the sound of the lift being activated, and watched as her car rose into the air.

“I love the paint,” Lena observed. “Didn’t notice the purple stripe you had added out in the lot - subtle little touch.”

“Thank you.” It had been a bit of an extravagance, really, but she’d enjoyed adding something to make her car that much more special.

Lena had taken her flannel back off and was pulling a set of orange latex gloves onto her hands when a thought seemed to strike her. “Oh. Technically the insurance says no customers on the shop floor, but there’s not likely to be anyone else coming in tonight. You could grab one of the chairs and wait here, if you like.”

Amélie briefly considered the merits of the TV out in the waiting room, but to her surprise the desire for some company won out over the solitude she’d been craving earlier. Dragging the chair over, she draped her coat over the back before settling down. “I did not expect to meet an Englishwoman here.”

Lena’s chuckle came from beneath the car, where she was shining a work light up into the undercarriage. “We’re both a ways from home, aren’t we? Wasn’t really where I planned to end up, I will admit.”

“May I ask…?”

She could see the light bob as Lena shrugged. “Ex-girlfriend was an actress and wanted to move to the States. Good for her career, she said.” Bitterness seeped into her tone. “Apparently so was sleeping with her producer.”

“Ah.” Amélie looked down at the floor. “I am sorry.”

“Well, it could be worse. I heard from a friend about a little town that needed a mechanic a few hours away, got a loan to buy the shop. Decided to make it a bit of an adventure, you know…? ” Lena trailed off as she concentrated on something, and then gave a grunt. “Oh, dammit that was _not_ what I was hoping for…”

Amélie winced. “Bad?”

“Not good,” Lena hedged. “Here - push that cart over? I need my socket driver.”

Amélie walked over and brought the tools over as asked, getting a murmur of thanks before Lena swore under her breath again, then went quiet except for the sound of ratcheting.

“ _Fucking_ Audi gearboxes…” Lena gave a grunt, then made a satisfied noise. “There we are…” There was another rattle of tools, and Lena leaned over to get a proper look at her. “So what about you? How’d you end up across the pond?”

“My husband was in finance,” Amélie explained after a moment. “His firm offered him a promotion, but it required him to relocate. I decided to come with him rather than stay in France.”

“You say was,” Lena observed as she went back to work. “Things didn’t work out?”

“No…” Amélie bit her lip, her chest suddenly tight. “We had two very good years. Happy years. I made some friends. I had started to work. But…” She trailed off, so lost in her memories that she didn’t even realize Lena had stopped working. “He had been having headaches. He went to the doctor, and…” She made a little gesture. “An ‘aggressive’ cancer. There was nothing to be done.”

“Oh. Shit.” Lena came out from beneath the car. “I’m so sorry.” She swallowed nervously. “Can I ask...how long?”

“Five years,” Amélie said as she looked down at the floor. “Four days ago.”

“God, that’s…” She shook her head. “That’s so hard.” She walked over, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Sorry to have brought it up.”

Amélie reached up to put her hand on Lena’s, appreciating the kindness, then realized Lena was still wearing a glove.

A glove that was now quite covered in grease and oil, which were soaking into her white silk blouse.

 _“Shit!”_ Lena snatched back her hand, her face flushing. “Sorry, sorry, _fuck!”_

Amélie stared at the black hand print in horror for a few seconds, then did the only thing she could: She laughed.

It started in deep in her stomach and burst out of her mouth, the absurdity of this entire evening boiling up and overwhelming her until she felt tears pricking at her eyes and she was rocking back in the chair, nearly tipping it over.

Lena stared at her with wide eyes, stunned by the sight of her until she finally started giggling herself, joining in before she pulled the gloves off and tossed them into the bin. “Wow. OK...well, I guess that happened.”

“Hah... “ Amélie sniffed, then used the hand that had not gotten smeared with grease to wipe at her eyes. “I...I am sorry. It’s just all...it’s all so _ridiculous_ . My car, this shop, the snow, my _shirt,_ stuck hours from anywhere.” She stood and looked at her hand. “Do you have a sink?”

“Yeah, sorry, over in the corner - got the lava soap and everything.” Lena smiled as she gestured over to the sink. “Anyway - no harm done. Sounds like you needed that, honestly. But...” She sighed as she went back beneath the car. “I’m afraid I’ve got some bad news.”

Amélie rolled the sleeves of her blouse up to her elbows after she finished cleaning up. “I suppose I should not have expected anything else.”

When Lena walked back from the car, she held a pan and gasket in her hands. “This is the sump pan for the dual clutch the flappy paddle gearbox uses.” She tilted it so Amélie could see the bottom. “Should be a wet sump - oil to keep the gearing lubricated.”  
  
Amélie looked into the pan, and it was covered with metal shavings, with a thin scum of burnt oil at the bottom. “That does not look terribly lubricated to me.”

Lena shook her head. “That’s because it’s not.” She set the pan down and lifted up a thin piece of metal from it. “This _was_ your gasket - but it’s cracked. Manufacturing flaw - I’ve seen a few notices. You’ve probably been losing a bit of oil every time you changed gears for the past couple of weeks, and as you lost oil the clutches started to chew themselves up, until it finally lost the gearing entirely today.”

Amélie groaned. “That will not be cheap to replace, then.”

“Afraid not,” Lena admitted glumly. “She’ll need the whole transmission pulled so I can get the gearbox and clutch out and install a replacement.” She put the sump pan down and took the gloves off, tossing them into a wastebin. “Might be able to save you a little dosh if I order a rebuilt gearbox instead of a brand new part, but it’s not like we can run out to the breaker’s yard and find one for you tonight. I’d expect a day to get the part, minimum, and another four or five hours or work - at least - before I can get you back on the road…”

“And tomorrow is Christmas Day.” Amélie looked back. “Even if you placed the order this minute, no one would be there to receive it.”

“Yup.” Lena punched the lift’s control, lowering the car back to the ground. “Got a suitcase in the boot?”

Amélie grimaced as she popped the trunk lid. “Full of dirty clothes. I was on my way home.” Sighing, she pulled the suitcase from the trunk. “Does this town have a laundromat? Or would it be closed as well?”

Lena gestured upwards. “My apartment’s upstairs. Got a washer and dryer open twenty four by seven, and service is free.” She looked back at the handprint she’d left on her shoulder, and her cheeks went pink again, making her freckles stand out in contrast. “Least I can do.”

Amélie paused, suitcase in hand. “I...had thought to ask you to just drive me to a hotel. Or perhaps a car rental.”

“Only rental place in town closed hours ago...and with the snow, the motel six is probably full up, too.” Lena bit her lip. “You’d probably need...what, two, three more hours to get home? Spending a couple hundred bucks for a rental car on top of that, plus driving back here?” She ran her teeth over her lip, and Amélie had to admit it was rather...distracting.

_Stop that. She mentioned an ex-girlfriend but that does not mean she is available._

“Anyway,” Lena continued on, oblivious to her thoughts, “I...this is _terrible_ , but I bought one of those ready to warm up Christmas dinners from the market here, and it’s not like I have anyone else to eat it with.”

_Oh._

“So,” Lena smiled. “Free food, free laundry, and if you like, I can spend some time tomorrow on the teardown - get everything ready for when the parts _do_ come in.” She looked up, nervous hope in her eyes. “What do you think?”

Amélie considered it, then reached out to shut the trunk. “With such a generous offer, how could I refuse?”


	2. Chapter 2

Lena felt as if her heart was going to burst out of her chest as she lead Amélie up the stairway to her apartment, her stomach fluttering with every step.

“I think I have some cornstarch in the kitchen - should help to get that grease out of your shirt. And I just bought more detergent for the washer - are the pod things ok? It’s all I buy any more because I’m pretty rubbish at laundry and it lets me get away with being lazy and oh god I’m babbling aren’t I…”

She turned as she opened the door to see Amélie looking at her with an expression she couldn’t quite read. “Perhaps a bit, yes.”

Lena could feel herself flushing and tried to hide her burning cheeks with a cough. “Sorry, bad habit. I’m used to talking to cars more than people, lately.”

Amélie raised a perfectly arched eyebrow, and Lena knew she was utterly screwed.

_Don’t do this to yourself, Lena. She just told you about her husband passing away, she’s probably straight as a board. You’re doing this because it’s the right thing to do, nothing more. Don’t you dare start crushing on the gorgeous bird who got stuck in town while you fix up her car._

_While being snowed in._

_On Christmas._

_Bloody hell._

“Anyway,” Lena cleared her throat as they walked into the living room of her small flat. “Let me show you the washer and dryer - feel free to do as many loads as you need.” She took a look over at her guest, trying to guess at her sizes. “Most of my clothes are probably a bit small for you, but I have a couple of flannels that are pretty big on me, and some pyjama pants if you’d like.”

“That would be fine, yes.” Amélie’s voice was thoughtful as Lena led her down the hall, then opened the little laundry room for her. “I was going to let a friend know when I got home today. I should probably send her a message.”

“Sure.” Lena smiled as she retreated a bit, watching as Amélie opened up her suitcase and started to take out some things to throw into the wash. “I’m going to pop back to the kitchen, grab that cornstarch and a bowl for you, OK?”

Amélie nodded without looking up from the suitcase and Lena retreated back to the kitchen, shaking her head at her own foolishness.

“Brilliant,” Lena murmured sarcastically to herself. “Just...real smooth, Lena. What are you even doing?”

She thumped her head gently against one of the kitchen cabinets. “You’re a disaster, Oxton.” She let her head rest against the cool surface of the door for a moment, then tried to squish down her self pity and get moving, grabbing one of the mixing bowls.

It took a few minutes of rattling around, but she managed to find a box of cornstarch hiding behind the can of oatmeal, giving a little “Hah!” of triumph as she popped back down the hall. “Ok, found...  _oh.”_

Amélie had taken off the stained blouse, leaving her in an elegant looking black lace bra when Lena had come around the corner. She’d turned away from the laundry room’s door and had a hair tie between her teeth, while her hands were occupied with putting her long dark hair back into a ponytail.

“Mm?” Amélie turned at the sound of her coming in, and Lena did her best to keep from falling right over as she wordlessly offered the bowl and box of cornstarch. “Oh - thank you.”

She had to swallow twice before she could manage to talk again, desperately trying to maintain eye contact. “Sure. Hey - are you hungry? I mentioned the Christmas dinner but that’ll take a little time to warm up, so I was thinking to save that for tomorrow. I’ve got some frozen pizzas, though, or there’s some cans of soup and I could fix sandwiches.”

Amélie gave her another one of those looks that Lena couldn’t quite read, then smiled at her. “Pizza is fine. But what about the shirt?”

“Shirt?” Lena managed as Amélie turned around and bent over the washer to drop in the detergent pods. “Oh. Oh! Right! Shirt! One sec and I’ll grab that before I get the oven going…”

The oversized flannel she’d had in mind had ended up being at the back of her closet, but Lena finally found the clothes she’d promised and dropped them off for Amélie, hanging the shirt over the doorknob, then got the oven going for the pizza and waited for the sound of the washing machine before heading back to check on Amélie again, hoping she could avoid making a complete fool of herself.

“Everything going OK in here?”

“Yes,” Amélie said as she finished closing her suitcase, and Lena’s first thought was she’d drastically underestimated the impact of the other woman wearing her clothes. “I will need to run at least one more load, not counting my blouse, but I should have what I need. Thank you for letting me use your washing machine.”

“Like I said, no trouble at all.” Lena gestured back towards the living room. “I hope pepperoni is OK for the pizza? I forgot to ask - if you’re veggie I can throw a cheese one in, too.”

Amélie put a hand on her stomach. “I...did not eat a great deal today. Would it be too much trouble to ask for both?”

Lena grinned. “No trouble at all, luv. Here - feel free to see if there’s anything you’d like to watch on TV, and I’ll get those cooked up.”

* * *

When Lena emerged from the kitchen, Amélie had turned the television over to the weather report, and was frowning at the screen from where she sat on the couch.

“They said the storm has left nearly six inches of snow on the ground tonight - and another four is predicted by morning.” She looked over, and her expression lightened. “It seems I made the right decision.”

“Absolutely.” Lena set the pizzas down on her coffee table, then straightened up. “Care for something to drink? I don’t have wine, but there’s beer, some soda, or I could put the kettle on.”

Amélie chuckled. “After today, I think I could use something a bit stronger, but a beer will do.”

With the help of a few beers and a good bit of the pizzas Lena had finally started to feel more relaxed and at ease, and she was glad to see that Amélie seemed to feel the same.

 _Be honest,_ she chided herself. _She’s acted more at home than you have!_ Looking over at the gorgeous woman - still wearing her clothes! - part of Lena’s brain thought Amélie being ‘home’ in her apartment didn’t sound bad at all, and she was mentally smacking herself for that when something suddenly occurred to her.

“Going to get colder tonight too, isn’t it?”

“Mm?” Amélie looked over from where she’d been contemplating her third bottle of beer. “Yes, I believe so.”

Lena reached up to rub nervously at the back of her head. “I’ve got a couple blankets but the living room tends to get pretty drafty. Originally I was going to offer you the couch, but you might want to take my bed instead, and I can sleep out here.”

Amélie shook her head. “No, no, I couldn’t possibly...you have been very kind, Lena, but this is _your_ home. I would not feel right about taking your bed from you.”

“I appreciate it, but I don’t want you put out any more than you already have been.” Lena set her own beer down. “I mean...you’ve had a _hell_ of a day, honestly.”

Amélie laughed again - not the almost desperate release of tension she’d had down in the garage, but a gentler, warmer sound. “That is true, but still, please, Lena. The only way I would take your bed is if I was sharing it with you.”

_God, she has a beautiful laugh._

_Wait, what did she just say?!_

Lena blinked a few times as her brain caught up to her ears. “I’m not sure you meant that to sound the way it came out.”

Amélie didn’t seem to catch that, or the furious blush Lena was certain was now rising on her face.  “As long as the bed is big enough,” Amélie went on, “why shouldn’t we both use it? If you are worried about the cold, it is the simplest solution. Bring your extra blankets, and we should both be comfortable.”

“Well…” Lena swallowed. “Yeah. It’s...I mean it is a queen sized bed, so...sure, I guess. If you like. Will your laundry be OK?”

Amélie stood with a decisive nod. “Let me put my things in the dryer while you make up the bed. I can take care of the rest tomorrow.”

Lena gathered up the empty beer bottles and put what was left of the pizza into the fridge while Amélie got the dryer started, then ducked into her bedroom so she could change into a sleep shirt while her guest was occupied.

She’d just pulled her bra over her head when she heard the sound of Amélie coming through the door. “Oh! Excuse me - I didn’t realize you were changing.”

“Sorry!” Lena apologized as she grabbed her shirt off the bed. “I should have said something, I didn’t mean to-”

“Lena,” Amélie stopped her before she could get on another babbling tear. “It is fine.” As she struggled into the shirt, Amélie pulled back the blankets on one side of the bed. “This is _your home_ \- and besides, I see women changing almost every day.”

“Oh?” Lena threw her clothes in the hamper before turning back, her embarrassment fading.

“I teach dancing,” Amélie explained as she got under the covers. “Ballet, mostly, but some modern dance as well. It is why I was in Galena to begin with - I was contacted by a school asking for someone to teach the basics of ballet for a class. I helped them to perform a few pieces from _The Nutcracker_ , to go with this time of year.”

Lena couldn’t help her smile. “Aww, that’s really sweet! Do you enjoy it?”

“I love to dance,” Amélie answered with a wistful smile. “Teaching is interesting. I did not dance for some time after I lost Gérard, but it gave me a way to...work back into things. A place to begin again.” Her smile turned a bit pained. “The greatest challenge can be to remember that I am working with children, at times, and not adults. To make sure I am not terrifying them.”

“Aw, I bet you’re brilliant with kids.” Lena hit the light on her way back to the bed, then slipped under the blankets herself, turning to finish the conversation. “You don’t seem terrifying at all to me.”

“Perhaps intimidating is a better word,” Amélie mused quietly. “Regardless, it can be a bit of a balancing act. But - thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Lena assured her, and she thought she could see Amélie’s lips turn up in a smile as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. “Good night, Amélie.”

“Good night.”

* * *

Lena was used to waking up early - she normally had to get the shop open by nine, and often had customers who asked if she could let them take care of a pick up or drop off before work that she tried to accommodate.

In this case, there wasn’t going to be anyone looking to pick up their car today, but she _did_ want to get that transmission pulled sooner than later, and it would be nice to make some pancakes or something - it _was_ Christmas, after all.

Still, as her alarm went off, she felt a real reluctance to do _anything._ Despite the snow she could see on her bedroom windowsill she was feeling incredibly content and warm. The blankets she’d piled onto the bed had made everything delightfully cozy, and it was even better thanks to the arm wrapped around her waist and the feeling of another woman’s body snuggled against her back.

_God I’ve missed that. It’s been way too long._

The alarm’s harsh buzz brought her from sleepy musing to full wakefulness, and she reluctantly tried to wiggle herself loose until she could reach over and slap the button to shut it off.

 _“Ne pars pas s'il te plaît.”_ Amélie murmured sleepily, and Lena felt the arm around her waist tighten slightly. _“Pas cette fois, Angela...”_

Lena felt as if she could barely breathe. She didn’t have much cause to use her secondary school French here - hadn’t really used it often _before_ she’d moved to America - but she understood the tone as much as the words - and the name.

 _OK, maybe she’s not_ entirely _straight._

She honestly wasn’t certain what to do, and after laying in bed for a little longer Lena finally put her hand on Amélie’s, squeezing it lightly.

“Amélie...sorry, but can I get up?”

Amélie let out a soft, disappointed sounding groan before she stiffened, her breath catching in a gasp of surprise as she realized she wasn’t holding on to the woman she’d subconsciously expected. Her hand loosened, and Lena felt her scoot back slightly. “I am sorry.”

Lena sat up and gave her a smile. “No harm done - just needed to visit the loo.” A bit of a white lie - but it wasn’t entirely. Just not her _only_ reason for getting up. “I was thinking of making some breakfast before I start working on tearing down your car. Are you hungry?”

Amélie gave a little shrug from beneath the blankets. “I could eat.”

“Good enough!” Lena grabbed a few things from her dresser before she slipped into the bathroom, and grabbed a quick shower before she dressed and made her way back to the kitchen, getting the kettle on and gathering what she needed to make up eggs, pancakes, and bacon.

“After all,” she said to herself as she got to mixing up her batter, “it _is_ Christmas morning.”

When Amélie emerged, dressed in a plain black T-shirt and a pair of jeans, she accepted a mug of black tea with a wordless sound of thanks, taking a few sips as she settled at the kitchen table.

“Laundry come out of the dryer OK?”  
  
“Yes,” Amélie answered without really looking up from the mug. “I started my other load in the washer. Thank you again.”

“My pleasure.” Lena flipped another pancake out in the pan. “How’d you like your eggs?”

“Whatever is easiest for you,” Amélie answered in a dull voice, and Lena turned to give her a little frown. Her face was drawn and glum, shoulders slumped slightly.

“Scrambled it is, then.” She let Amélie finish her tea while she finished the food, then put a plate down in front of her. “Here you are!”

“It’s...this is very nice of you.” Amélie took a bit of pancake and an egg, chewing slowly before she spoke again. “It’s good.”

“I’m not terribly good in the kitchen,” Lena admitted, “but breakfast I can usually manage.” She finished most of a pancake and her eggs before finally deciding to address the elephant in the room. “So...who’s Angela?”

Amélie looked up with a start, her eyes going wide. “How do you know that name?”

Lena coughed. “When my alarm went off and I tried to get up the first time. You didn’t want me to get up. Asked me...asked her...not to leave.”

Amélie winced before she sat back in her chair with a sigh. “I am sorry.”  
  
“Like I said before - no harm done.” Lena gave her a sympathetic look. “Want to talk about it?”

Amélie gave a little hum before she began to explain. “One of my friends - the one I mentioned last night - encouraged me to try date again. Set me up with someone.”

Lena hummed. “Well, that’s good - if you wanted the help.” She took a sip of her own tea, trying not to push too hard. “So - that someone was Angela, then?”

Amélie nodded. “Olivia thought we would…’hit it off’. At first we did. But…” She sighed. “She was - _is -_ a doctor. A surgeon. She works at the same hospital where Gérard was receiving treatment, in fact.”

Lena nodded. “Everything sounds pretty good so far.”

“Her work keeps her busy.” Amélie looked out the window, her eyes not really seeing the snow. “Very, very busy. It was not so bad, at first. But I tried to ask for more...and she was not able to give that to me.” She shook her head. “I am not sure she could give it to anyone.”

Lena gave a sympathetic nod, and put a hand on her shoulder. “How long were you two...um...involved?”

“Off and on...a bit more than six months. But we agreed to call things off back in October.” Amélie picked up her fork again, toying with a chunk of pancake. “I suppose she was on my mind because Olivia asked if we...might try again. She invited both of us to a party last night.”

“Oof. And then you got stuck here.”

“Mm. That was not so bad, though.” Amélie finally managed a smile. “I told Olivia I wanted to be alone, but I enjoyed your company last night.”

Lena grinned. “That makes two of us.” She cleared her throat. “So - I thought I’d get that transmission of yours pulled, and then get the dinner going. I was wondering if there was anything...you wanted to do for the holiday?”

Amélie shrugged again, but it was thoughtful rather than melancholy. “I haven’t been terribly religious in quite some time. Given the name of the town...is there anything _to_ do?”

“Oh,” Lena giggled, “there’s a few things going on. Lots of people like to put up holiday lights, and there’s a winter carnival that gets going tonight after dark to go with it. I’m not really big on it myself, ironically, but I wouldn’t mind taking a look at the shiny stuff or going to the skating pond.”

“Is that why the driver knew you would be open last night?”  
  
“What, Mako?” Lena shrugged. “I suppose. Not anywhere else to go, after all…”

Amélie gave her another one of those looks, and Lena tried to pretend she didn’t know what it could mean. “I am glad you were there to help me, but that seems a bit of a shame. You’ve been nothing but welcoming. You deserve to enjoy yourself.”

Lena gave her a little smile. “Who says I didn’t enjoy myself last night? Working on a gorgeous car, lovely company, a nice frozen pizza to go with - and now I get to go pull a transmission!”

That got an amused little look from Amélie. “I suppose you have a point."


	3. Chapter 3

Amélie was just pulling her second load of laundry from the dryer when her phone began to buzz in her pocket.

“Who..?” She reached into her pocket and fished out the phone to look at the caller ID: _Olivia Colomar_

“I suppose I should have expected that.” Shaking her head, she punched accept and put the device to her ear, but before she could speak Olivia’s half frantic voice exploded from the speaker.

“Where the _fuck_ are you?!”

Amélie snorted. “And a merry Christmas to you as well.”

“Ami, seriously - I didn’t hear from you last night and when I stopped by to check on you I saw your driveway is, like, completely covered in snow and you’re obviously _not_ at home.”

“Didn’t hear from me?” Amélie frowned as she leaned against the laundry table. “Didn’t you get my message?”

She could almost hear Olivia rolling her eyes. “Uh, _no_ , or obviously I wouldn’t have hauled my ass over to your house - did I mention it is _freezing_ and covered in snow?”

Amélie shook her head as she checked her phone, and saw the red exclamation point next to the message she’d tried to send explaining what had happened. “Ah. I am sorry - it seems the message I tried to send did not go through.” She sighed, letting her voice soften. “I _did_ try to let you know. I am sorry to have worried you.”

Olivia gave a little grunt, and Amélie could hear a car door closing in the background. “Ok, ok, I guess I forgive you...but seriously, what’s going on?”

“My car broke down,” Amélie explained. “I got a tow to the nearest garage that was still open, in a town called Holliday, and the mechanic found my clutch needs to be replaced.”

“Well, _that_ sucks...but couldn’t you have gotten a rental car or something?” Olivia’s voice was touched with concern. “Are you in a hotel…?”

Amélie gave an embarrassed little cough. “Not...exactly…”

“Not _exactly?!”_ Olivia seemed even more confused. “OK, come on, what the hell?”

“The mechanic who owns the garage lives in an apartment above her shop. Since we would not be able to get parts today, she offered to let me stay with her. We’re going to have dinner later...and there is a carnival tonight. She mentioned ice skating.”

Olivia’s confusion turned to something more sly. “Oh, _is_ there?”

“No,” Amélie put up a hand even though she couldn’t see it. “Olivia, it’s nothing like that.”

“ _Really_. Because that sounds an awful lot like you’re going on a _date_ to me.”

“I really need to finish doing my laundry,” Amélie evaded. “I think Lena is working on finishing pulling my transmission out of the car and I was going to offer to help with dinner.”

“Lena _,_ huh?” Olivia’s voice had a sly smirk to it. “That’s a cute name. She got a cute butt to go with it?”

“I’ll probably be home tomorrow if we can get the parts for the car promptly,” Amélie said as blandly as she could. “I’ll call you when I get back.”

“Girl, if you’re gonna hit that you oughta take more _time_ -”

Amélie shook her head as she hung up the phone.

“ _Ridiculous_ …” Lena was being kind. Friendly. Welcoming. She hadn’t done anything to even suggest an ulterior motive, and Olivia didn’t even _know_ her.

She hadn’t even told Lena she wanted to go to the carnival yet.

 _Still_ , a little voice in the back of her mind murmured, _she seems to like you. And last night was nice...as was the morning._

Shaking her head, she finished folding her laundry. “It is not as if I am staying here.”

 _It is not as if you couldn’t use waiting for the parts as an excuse,_ the devil on her shoulder whispered back.

Amélie sighed at her own foolishness as she put the rest of the clothes back into her suitcase. She’d give the blouse another day to get the oil out, and if that didn’t work she would take it to a dry cleaner. Even a town this small likely had one.

_And if they need a few days to clean it, that’s another excuse to stay, isn’t it? Or a good reason to come back._

She tried not to think too deeply about that idea as she put her suitcase in Lena’s bedroom and made her way back down to the garage.

She could see a transmission jack in place under the TT, and the front wheels had been removed and carefully placed to the side to give Lena access to the bolts securing the clutch.

“Never understood why German engineers always stuff _everything_ into the wells as tightly as they can. Don’t their assembly line workers have _thumbs?”_ Lena growled with frustration at some unseen impediment as she shoved her arm deep into the car’s innards. “Why would anyone want to run the air conditioning lines so they’d block all the bolts, anyway?”

Amélie chuckled softly as she walked up behind her. “Talking to the cars again?”

Lena started, just barely avoiding hitting her head on the wheel well before she turned back. “Oh! Sorry, I didn’t hear you coming in.” Carefully, she worked her arm free before turning around. “Having a hell of a time with this thing, but we’re getting to know each other.”

“Ahh.” She walked around the car, then looked at the bolts that Lena had placed on a tray. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

Lena turned back to the car and considered that for a moment. “Well. Got the hoses moved and the bolts off the housing, mostly, but if you wanted to glove up and steady the gearbox while I unbolt the supports?”

Amélie nodded, and went to grab a pair of gloves from the box on the workbench. “I can do that.”

“Brilliant - put your hands here,” Lena gestured at two spots on the clutch. “Just be careful - it’ll be pretty heavy. The jack stand is going to take the weight as it comes out, but don’t let your fingers get pinched.”

“I think I have it.” She held the clutch steady as Lena worked to remove the last few bolts and the support, carefully bracing it until she felt it come loose. As the assembly came down, she guided it down carefully until it was settled onto the jack and stepped back. “There - it’s on the stand.”

Lena gave a sigh of relief as she stepped around. “Finally!” She thumbed a control box and the stand lowered with a hiss, then wheeled it over to sit next to the workbench. “I’ll pull the clutch off the gearbox once we get the part in - feels like a good stopping point here.”  
  
“Wonderful.” Amélie pulled the gloves off and tossed them into the bin. “Would you like some help with making dinner?”

“Absolutely! Just let me wash up.” Lena yanked her own gloves off and went to the shop sink to clean the grease and oil off that had gotten onto her arms. “There were instructions with it - the ham takes the longest, no surprise.”

“What else is included in this meal?”

Lena smiled as she scrubbed herself clean. “Potatoes au gratin, a roasted brussels sprouts salad, and rolls. Oh - and cranberry relish, but that doesn’t need to be heated back up!”

Amélie couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow. “That is quite a bit of food for one person.”

“Well...yeah.” Lena rubbed at the back of her head. “I was probably going to be eating leftovers for a few days. Make soup from the ham, that sort of thing. But honestly this is way better. It’s nice having someone around. Share things with a friend.”

“Yes,” Amélie agreed as she thought about the state of her own pantry. She hadn’t even planned for a Christmas dinner, had she? “Yes, I suppose it is.”

* * *

For someone who claimed not to be terribly good in the kitchen, Lena seemed quite happy there.

They had unpacked the ham and sides she’d purchased, found pans for everything that would need to cook on the stove, and before long they had the ham in the oven and the smells of the holiday meal had filled the apartment while Lena put some instrumental holiday music on her stereo.

Amélie didn’t feel like having any more beer, but part of her dearly wished she had a glass of wine while they’d worked. It just felt like the right thing to do, somehow.

“See,” Lena mused as she sipped a glass of water, “if I’d known this might happen I’d have at least picked up a few bottles of sparkling cider or something.”

“I would have liked that,” Amélie admitted as she finished setting the table for them. “But it could be worse.”  
  
“Actually…” Lena grinned as she looked back at her kitchen. “Hold that thought.”

Amélie raised an eyebrow. “Mmm?”

Lena disappeared into the kitchen and she could hear the sound of glasses being moved around.  
  
“Come on...I know I had...ah! There you are!” There was a sound of more running water, and a minute later Lena emerged with a pair of wine glasses filled with a pale amber liquid.

Amélie took a glass, looking at it with surprise. “I thought you didn’t drink wine.”

“Well,” Lena admitted, “I still don’t. But I got the glasses ages ago as a housewarming gift, and I realized I still had a bottle of ginger ale in the fridge that I hadn’t opened.” She gave a shy little smile. “I know it’s not quite the same, but…”

Amélie reached out to put her free hand on Lena’s shoulder. “It’s perfect, Lena. This was a lovely idea.”

Part of her was tempted to lean in, to kiss her on the cheek, to do something rash considering she’d known this woman for less than a day, really, no matter how kind and charming she’d been. Lena met her eyes and Amélie wondered if the same thing was going through the other woman’s mind as well, but before either of them could move the tension was broken by the high pitched beep of the oven timer going off.

“Well,” Lena smiled a bit nervously as she put her wineglass down on the table, “that’s dinner, then! Here - I’ll grab my oven mitts and pull the ham and potatoes out - could you bring over the rolls and the veg?”

“Ah.” Amélie put her glass down as well and went to join her. “Yes...yes, of course.”

The meal was pleasant, and the ginger ale went remarkably well with the spices that had been used to to encrust the ham, which was a welcome surprise.

They mostly ate in silence, enjoying the food and music, but Amélie noticed Lena glancing at her several times, slowing down as if considering something before she finally spoke.

“It’s funny,” Lena said as she picked up her glass of ginger ale again. “I didn’t even know you a few days ago, but...I’m really glad you’re here, Amélie. Having dinner with me and all.”

“I was thinking much the same,” Amélie admitted. “I admit that I would rather have _not_ had my car break down…”  
  
“Hah. Yeah!”

“But,” Amélie smiled to her. “If I have to be stranded...I am glad it was here, with you.”

A blush spread across Lena’s cheeks as she raised her glass, holding it up in a toast. “Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas, Lena.” Their glasses rang softly as they tapped them together, and Amélie took another sip of her soda. “So you mentioned some lights, and the ice skating…?”

Lena grinned. “Yeah, there’s a couple of families who go absolutely nuts with their lights and displays. We do get some people driving through town to check them out now and then - they made the news last year!”

“So - after we take care of the dishes...shall we go?”

* * *

Somehow, the fact that Lena drove a Mini managed to take her by surprise. “I know it’s a stereotype,” she admitted, “but they’re awfully good fun.”

“I can imagine - but really, I’m more horrified by your license plate.” Amélie shook her head as she walked past the back of the car, which proudly displayed the ‘L3SB3AN’ tag. “You are not exactly subtle.”

Lena giggled as she unlocked the car. “Look, the people in this town know i’m the best mechanic from here to Chicago, and that I like girls. I may as well have fun with it.” As they got in, Lena thumbed the starter button with a grin. “Besides, do you have _any_ idea how many of the kids in town drop by to talk to me while they’re trying to figure themselves out? I ought to put a therapist’s couch in the waiting room.”

Amélie chuckled as she let Lena drive them through the town. It was...rather quaint, really. Lights strung along the streets and storefronts, a bit of snow starting to fall again, gentler than last night’s storm.

The streets were still fairly deserted, but there were a few families walking here and there in the snow, and she spotted children working on snowmen in a few yards when they moved into more residential streets.

Everything had a bit of a dreamlike quality to it and Amélie found herself resting her head against the side of the passenger window, letting herself be carried along with it...until Lena turned a corner and she found herself suddenly besieged by light and sound.

“ _Mon dieu!”_ Straightening up against the car seat, Amélie gaped at the sight of the houses that lined the street.

Where some of the houses they had passed had been decorated using strings of lights or some of the newer LED projectors in a few cases, these had elaborate scenes of illuminated trees, snowflakes, reindeer, sleighs, and in a few cases featured motorized figures, lasers,  and sequences of strings to create animations.

“Yeah,” Lena admitted over the Christmas Carols that could be clearly heard from the speakers in several of the yards, “it’s all a bit over the top, isn’t it?”

Amélie shook her head. “This is _hideous_. How do their neighbors get any sleep?”

“Well,” Lena chuckled, “aside from the ones who join in, the mayor’s office send them all notices to make sure everything’s on timers and shuts off by no later than midnight. Someone _did_ try to push it, my second year in town, and the fine they had to pay was even worse than their electric bill.”

“That is good, at least…” Amélie stared at a particularly garish house with rows of candy canes pulsing in sequence up to a set of dancing snowmen. “I think I would have to be insane to think this was a good use of my time.”

Lena shrugged. “It started as a bit of a competition between a couple of families on the street and it spread to most of their neighbors - but it’s all in good fun.” Her grin turned a little crooked. “I _do_ like seeing what kind of ridiculousness people have decided to use each year. But I’m just as glad to live halfway across town.”

“So where is this carnival, then?”

“Up by the high school - they use the football field to set up the booths and games.” Lena thankfully turned them away from the street of monstrosities, and before long the lights had become a great deal more sedate. “The money they raise goes to help fund school trips and that sort of thing. It runs from tonight until the day after New Years, and then they break it all down before going back to classes.”

A few of the high school students were helping to direct cars to parking spaces, and before long they were walking through the snow covered football field with paper cups of hot chocolate, Amélie letting Lena lead her towards the skating pond that had been set up.

“Oo!” Lena pointed to one of the booths that had been set up to the side. “They’ve got the snowball toss again. How’s your throwing arm?”

Amélie smiled behind her cup. “Not so bad…” She looked at the booth - there was an attendant in a heavy parka packing snowballs at the front of the booth, while a set of targets at the back shaped like snowmen had round holes cut into each of them. A sign at the back explained the rules: Fifteen points for the smallest hole, set in the snowman’s mouth, ten for the larger one in the chest, and, five for the largest target in the belly.

“Oh,” the attendant waved to them, “hello, Lena! It’s good to see you! Who’s your friend?”

“Hullo, Mei!” Lena gestured using her free hand as she made introductions. “Amélie Lacroix - this is Mei-Ling Zhou. She’s the science teacher at the school here. Mei - Amélie’s from out of town, actually.” Lena bit her lip again. “She had a spot of car trouble so I’ve been helping her out.”

“Oh my gosh!” Mei’s eyes went wide behind her thick rimmed glasses.  “Well, I’m sorry to hear about your car, but don’t worry - Lena is the best!”

“So I’ve seen,” Amélie agreed with a smile. “So - how much does it cost to play?”

“Two dollars for three snowballs,” Mei answered. “We have prizes based on how many points you score!”

Lena put her hot chocolate down before she went for her wallet. “Last year we didn’t have enough snow, so people were just throwing softballs. It was a bit lame, honestly.”

“I see.” Amélie put her own cup down, and set her purse next to it. “Then I am glad to get the real experience.”

“Oh,” Lena frowned as she set her wallet down. “I was going to pay.” 

Olivia’s words ran through her head, and Amélie tried to push them back out of her mind. It wasn’t a date. They hadn’t called any of this a _date_ , and if she wanted to pay for them Lena was just being...gallant.

 _That is not so different_ , she admitted to herself, but spoke up as an idea came to mind. “Why don’t we both see how we do?” She looked over at where Mei was putting together more snowballs, but the teacher didn’t seem to be concerned - or judging them. “I assume we will need to pay for skate rentals. Perhaps the loser here pays for the winner?”

Lena’s eyes flashed with a bit of competitive fire as her frown was replaced by a broad smile. “I like that idea. Care to fix us up, Mei?”

“Coming right up!”

They traded their money for their ammunition, and let Mei step out of the way before Lena gestured down range. “After you, luv.”

Amélie smirked as she picked up the first snowball, testing the weight and feel of it through her gloves. “You may find that was a mistake.” Turning her body slightly, she wound up and threw, the snowball sailing cleanly through the snowman’s mouth.

“Oh,” Lena grinned as she picked up one of her snowballs. “Is _that_ how it is?”

“Oh, yes, _chérie_ ,” she answered confidently. “That is how it is.”  If she took a little bit of satisfaction at how Lena’s eyes widened when she’d called her _darling_ , well...that wasn’t so bad either, was it?

She thought she caught Lena muttering something about ‘trying to throw me off my game’ before she finally threw. Though the snowball did catch a bit of the target’s edge, the bulk of it passed through the mouth, and Lena gave a happy cheer.

“Very well done,” Amélie had to admit. “But can you do it again?”

“That depends,” Lena smiled. “You planning to cheat again?”

“I’m sure I have no idea what you mean,” Amélie breezed as she took her next throw - right on target once again.

Lena scowled. “You’ve done this before, haven’t you?”

Amélie gave a happy little hum. “I might have been the pitcher on my softball team in school.”

“Figures,” Lena sighed. “Knew I should have agreed to play in the adult league when they tried to sign me up.”

Mei just giggled at them. “I should be the one who is upset - you brought in a ringer!”

Lena shook her head, but her shoulders shook with laughter as she wound up for her throw.

Amélie had expected Lena to try to match her again, but her throw went through the middle, instead. “Interesting choice.”

“Maybe I’m betting that you can’t get three in a row.” Lena leaned against the counter with feigned nonchalance. “You miss, I pick up another shot through the middle, and I can still pull this off!”

“A good strategy,” Amélie admitted as she aimed for the last throw, “but…” She let her last snowball fly, and gave a little chuckle as she scored through the mouth again. “I am afraid it did not pay off.”

Mei pointed to the last snowball waiting in front of Lena. “Take your last throw, though! After all, you may have lost your bet, but you can still win something from me!”

“That is true,” Amélie agreed. “So - show me what you can do?” 

Lena hummed thoughtfully, picked up the final snowball, and threw a bit too high, splattering it against the snowman’s hat. “Aw, _rubbish!”_ The look of betrayal she gave to her gloved hand was so ridiculous that Amélie had to laugh, and the little smile Lena gave her made Amélie think that perhaps that was the prize she’d been looking for after all.

Mei gave her a sympathetic look and reached out to pat her on the shoulder with one mitten wrapped hand. “Sorry, Lena! But you can pick out a toy or some candy from the blue bucket!” She looked over to Amélie and then pointed over at a red bucket. “And you get to pick whatever you’d like!”

Amélie lifted up the largest prize, a white furred teddy bear wearing a bright blue knit hat and scarf, wrapped in protective plastic. “Could you keep this safe for me while we go skating?”

“Of course,” Mei assured her. “Just stop by before you leave!”

“Completely suckered me,” Lena grinned. “You knew I’d be paying for the skates the minute I said yes, didn’t you?”

Amélie gave a happy little hum, then winked at her. “If it makes you feel better, you’ll probably get to see me make a fool of myself next. I haven’t gone ice skating since I was a little girl.”

“Just stay close to me,” Lena assured her. “I won’t let you fall!”

Amélie looked at her, and as she let Lena take her hand to lead her to the skate rental, she couldn’t help but think it might be too late for that.


	4. Chapter 4

Lena was very proud of herself for not checking out Amélie’s legs as she pulled on her rented skates and carefully laced them up, making sure she had the laces as tight as she could before tying them off.

Despite trying to sound suave and confident when she’d told Amélie she wouldn’t let her fall, Lena was actually a bit nervous. She usually only went skating during the carnival.

Still, it wouldn’t be _that_ hard…

She finished up her own laces as Amélie stood, and smiled as she pointed to the black rubber mats that lead to the edge of the pond. “Just walk as normally as you can on those, and try to get a feel for your balance on the skate blades.”

“I remembered that much,” Amélie took careful steps, testing herself with increasing confidence as she reached the edge of the snowy ice, where a set of temporary guide rails had been set to provide steadying handholds.

Lena waited as Amélie watched the other skaters on the pond, then carefully stepped onto the ice, keeping one hand close to the rail. Lena followed once she had enough room to take a few good marching steps, using the momentum to help glide smoothly up to her. “Just remember to keep your hands tucked in if you start to fall!”

“I appreciate you saying _if_ ,” Amélie observed with a bit of nervous amusement as she carefully began to push herself along the ice, “and not _when_.”

“Oh come on,” Lena grinned as she matched her pace. “Ballet dancer, right? Last I checked that involves being pretty graceful.”

“On a stage floor, in _shoes_ …” Still, despite her grumbling, Lena noticed that Amélie was smiling, and had let go of the rail entirely now.

“Nobody’s expecting you to go out and perform a triple axel or something.” Lena reached out and wrapped her fingers around Amélie’s, her heart racing as Amélie squeezed back tightly. “Here - don’t worry about anyone else, just nice and easy around the pond with me, OK?”

_She’s just grabbing tight to keep balance. You said you wouldn’t let her fall. Come on, Lena, don’t lose your head!_

“Around the pond,” Amélie agreed as she pushed off again, and Lena matched her pace.  

“Do you want to try stroking?” Lena was glad the cold and the snow had already raised a good bit of color in her cheeks. “That’s when you’re alternating which leg you use to push off.”

“I recall the term,” Amélie admitted with a sly little smile that made it clear she’d thought of the double entendre, too. “Will you be able to keep up if I do?” 

“Oh, listen to you!” Lena giggled as she pushed off a bit harder. “Don’t you worry, my legs are plenty long!”

Amélie laughed as she tried to speed up as well, but it quickly turned into a yelp of alarm as her skate blade came down on a deeper patch of snow and she began to lose her edge.

Lena turned her feet to help herself stop and pulled Amélie into her, bracing herself as Amélie turned, her skate scraping against the ice as they collided.

Amélie’s free arm came up to wrap around her shoulder, and before she knew it they were both laughing again as the near spill turned itself into a hug instead.

“Told you,” Lena smiled up at her, feeling the way Amélie’s chest was rising and falling against her as she caught her breath. Part of her really wanted to lean up as best as she could on skates - put a kiss to one blushing cheek or those gorgeous lips. “I’ve got you, luv.”

“So you do…” Amélie’s eyes were shining from more than just the carnival’s lights around them, and Lena felt as if everyone else on the pond had managed to disappear. The snow swirled around them as the wind shifted, and she reached up to brush a bit of snow from Amélie’s cheek with her thumb.

Amélie’s lips parted in wordless surprise, and somehow Lena knew she was wondering about kissing her, too.

_Can I do this?_

_Should I do this?_

Lena swallowed hard. She was painfully aware of the fact that once Amélie’s car was fixed, she would be leaving Holliday. Nothing but random chance had brought her here, and it wasn’t like she had all kinds of reasons to stay.

_Unless you gave her some._

Before either of them could act, or Lena’s mind could carry her away on any more flights of fancy, a child’s cry of dismay broke them from their reverie, and they turned to see a little girl who had fallen on her side, cradling one arm to her chest as she tried to hold back tears.

“Oh,” Lena breathed. “Oh, no. That’s...one of the Miller kids, I forget her name.” 

Amélie dug her skate blades in a bit, making sure she had her balance again before letting Lena go so she could carefully look around. “Do you see her parents?”

“No,” Lena frowned as she looked around. “Or her brothers or sisters, for that matter.”

Amélie nodded. “Keep an eye out for them.” Then, before Lena could do more than nod she was carefully pushing off again, skating over to the girl before she carefully bent her knees into a crouching squat.  “Did you hurt your arm?”

The Miller girl nodded, clearly on the verge of bawling. “Hurts...I...I fell.”

Amélie made a soft tutting sound of sympathy. “I almost fell myself. Do you think you could stand up, if I helped?”

“I dunno,” the girl said as she shook her head. “I want my mama!”

“We will find her,” Amélie reassured her, “but we should get you off of the pond.” She gave a little sound of dismay. “I am sorry, I have been very rude. I am Amélie. What is your name?”

Lena smiled as the distraction made the girl blink as she looked up at Amélie’s face. “‘M Danielle. Danielle Miller. But I like Dani better.”

“Dani is a lovely name,” Amélie agreed. “Danielle is very pretty too.” She pointed down to the ice. “Can you get on your knees so we can help you up, Dani?”

“I think so…” Dani moved her legs until she had her knees under her, and Lena skated over so she could help steady her.

“Easy now, luv - we’ve got you.”

“Just push yourself up,” Amélie encouraged her, and when Dani had started to get up to her feet, she stood with her and carefully helped Lena to get the little girl to her feet. “That was very good, Dani. You did very well.”

Dani sniffled again, nodding, and Lena spotted her mother skating towards them, clearly looking for her daughter.

“Hey,” Lena said as she pointed to her. “That’s your mum, right?”

“MAMA!” Dani called out to her, and Lena was pretty sure she’d have tried to race over to her mother if they hadn’t been holding her - and likely hurt herself again.

The woman skated over to them with wide eyes as she realized her daughter had been hurt. “Dani! What happened?!”

“She was skating by us,” Amélie explained, “and fell. It seems she hurt her arm. We were helping her off the pond.”

“Thank you _so_ much,” Mrs. Miller carefully took her daughter’s good arm. “I’ll take her the rest of the way. I really appreciate you looking after her!”

“It was no trouble,” Amélie demurred.

“Glad to help,” Lena agreed.

Dani gave them a smile and let go of her injured arm so she could wave at them. “Thanks, Mrs. Amy-lee!”  

“That’s not…” Amélie shook her head with a little laugh. “You are welcome, Dani.”

They waited until the Millers had left the rink, then Lena smiled up at Amélie as she recalled their conversation from the other night. “Knew you were brilliant with kids.”

Amélie flushed, looking down at the pond. “That was a bit different than teaching a class.”

Lena shook her head. “Would you just let me give you a compliment? I’m pretty sure Mrs. Miller would have agreed, too.”

Amélie smiled shyly at her. “I am sorry, Lena. I’m...you’ve just...you’ve only known me for a few days.”

Lena chuckled as she smiled back. “Sure. But they’ve been awfully interesting ones. So give _yourself_ some credit, luv.”

Amélie seemed to be turning that over as she watched skaters pass by them, then reached out to offer her hand. “Why don’t we finish that skate around the pond, and I will try.”

They managed two laps of the pond without any other incidents, finally making their way off to change back into their shoes and return their skates.

They visited Mei’s booth to collect Amélie’s bear, but when they got back to the car, Lena couldn’t help but feel a little reluctant to go, and Amélie seemed to feel the same.

“This has been really nice,” Lena told her as she looked over the Mini’s roof. “Part of me really doesn’t want to be done yet.”

Amélie nodded as she opened the door and put the bear into the backseat. “I was not quite sure what to think about the carnival, but this was lovely.” As they got into the car and buckled back up, Amélie spoke back up. “I noticed a few people walking along the main street. It is not so far from your garage.”

“No…” Lena smiled as she punched the starter and the Mini’s engine rumbled to life. “Not so far at all.”

They left the Mini at the Garage, and walked up the snowy sidewalks to Main Street, where the combination of the old streetlights and the still overcast skies gave everything a bit of a pinkish hue.

Somewhere between the Garage and an empty storefront that had once been a paint shop, Amélie’s hand found hers again.

They shared a smile as Lena squeezed her hand lightly, and she knew it had nothing to do with keeping balance when Amélie squeezed back.

“I noticed there are quite a few empty shops,” Amélie observed as they passed another FOR LEASE sign.   
  
“Yeah,” Lena admitted. “The economy, y’know. There used to be a lot of manufacturing down this way. Farms, too. It’s gotten better, but a lot of places took a hit.”   
  
“Mm.” Amélie seemed to make a mental note of that and let the subject drop, going quiet again until they reached the roundabout at the center of town, and the massive Christmas tree that dominated the middle of the traffic circle. “You never showed me what you won from the carnival.”   
  
Lena felt the butterflies in her stomach wake back up as she reached into her pocket. “Well...it’s a little silly.”

Amélie’s eyes seemed to twinkle a bit in the light. “You’re very good at silly, I’ve noticed.”  
  
“Heh. Figured me out already?” Lena brought the sprig of plastic mistletoe out of her coat pocket. “It was this or the noisemaker, really...and part of me was hoping I might get a bit more use out of it.”

She held the mistletoe over her head and watched Amélie’s eyes drift up to it, then back down to meet her own.   
  
“I mean...if you want to, that is.” Lena smiled nervously as she tried to read Amélie’s face. “I just...no pressure, but I felt a bit like...maybe there could be something there, if we wanted it to be.”   
  
Amélie’s answer came in their lips crashing together, and her arms pulling Lena close, the mistletoe falling into the snow.

“Yes,” Amélie murmured as she broke the kiss, her breath steaming into the air. “I think there could be.”  
  
“I know you have to go back home,” Lena said reluctantly as she reached up to stroke Amélie’s cheek. “But...it’s not so far away here, is it?”   
  
“No,” Amélie said before pressing a kiss into the palm of Lena’s glove. “It isn’t. I will need to go back...but it will be New Year’s soon.” She turned to look around the town square. “Do you do anything special for that in this town?”

Lena grinned. “Carnival would still be going...fireworks...there’s a parade on New Year’s Day.” She bit her lip a bit nervously. “Might be able to think of a few other things we could do, too.”

They kissed again, and Amélie gently tugged her arm back in the direction of the Garage. “Perhaps we could think of a few together.”  
  
“I might even have a few I could show you tonight…”


End file.
